FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH Guitarist: 'We Are The eBay Of Metal'

Darryl Smyers of the Dallas Observer recently conducted an interview with FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH guitarist Jason Hook. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

Dallas Observer: There are so many sub-genres in metal these days. Does your band fall under any particular category?

Hook: I just say we play hard rock. I think that heavy metal is certainly awesome, but hard rock has a wider audience. And I don't think there is anything wrong with being a hard rock band. I could go into it in more depth, but I'll take answer A: hard rock.

Dallas Observer: The band achieved success relatively quickly. What about the music drew a large fan base in such a short time?

Hook: I think the music is designed to be accessible. We always prioritize the song first. The priority is the song, and I think that has an effect on the listener. [Singer] Ivan [Moody] does a great job telling a story. That is just something he has as a gift.
Dallas Observer: Are you guys working on a fourth effort and will it be a CD/DVD combination?

Hook: I don't want to get in trouble by leaking it out that we are already starting our fourth record, but the general idea was to start preparing for the next record as early as possible. I think that the more choices you have, as in pieces of music, the better. Let's say you have to have a 10 song record in 18 months. Well, I'd rather start preparing 35 songs now and pick the best 10 later instead of having to crunch out 10 in the last month.

Dallas Observer: There is a wide demographic of people who go to hear the band live. What does it take to appeal to fans of many different ages?

Hook: I think it comes down to songs, personality and performance. There is a lot there for everybody. If you are a drummer, we have a star drummer. If you like hotshot guitar playing, we have that. If you are into bands that are angry, we are certainly that. But we also have melodies and choruses. There is a lot there for just about everybody. We are the eBay of metal.

Dallas Observer: You guys also have a nice sense of humor. That's missing from a lot of metal bands.

Hook: Again, that would be part of the personality of the band. People like the music and then they want to find out about you. If you have a good personality, that makes it so much fun for everybody else. If you are a dud, it makes it one-dimensional. We like to use humor and have fun with people. I am glad that we are not a stick in the mud.

Read the entire interview from Dallas Observer.